Given Petronio's NYC connection, it's no surprise that his company will perform at the Joyce Theater this week. There's no other venue that so aptly captures the haunting enthusiasm and open intimacy that the city harbors, all of which is reflected in Petronio's repertoire.

I was taken to this place by a recent performance of Einstein on the Beach, the landmark 1976 opera by composer Phillip Glass and Director Robert Wilson. Einstein is the first in a trilogy of avant-guarde operas.